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Collection
James Buchanan Collection
Title
James Buchanan Collection
Object ID
MG0096
Date Range
1816-present
  1 document  
Collection
James Buchanan Collection
Title
James Buchanan Collection
Description
The James Buchanan Collection, 1816-present, contains material that pertains to the life and legacy of James Buchanan and his Lancaster home, Wheatland. The collection includes correspondence of James Buchanan and letters written by his niece, Harriet Lane Johnston. Newspaper articles discuss Buchanan's life and Wheatland, tell the story of Buchanan's romance with Ann Coleman, and report on commemorative events. Legal and personal business are represented by deeds, financial matters, and Buchanan's probate records.
Political papers include the Presidential appointment of Buchanan as Minister to Russia, certification to represent Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate, and a series of letters regarding the Atlantic slave trade in 1819 and Liberia in 1858. In letters, Buchanan outlined his reasons for not wanting to run for Governor, wrote about the confidence bestowed on him by the Democratic Party, and established a fund for the city of Lancaster to purchase wood and coal for poor women during the winter. After the Crimean War, Buchanan wrote to the ambassador to the United Kingdom and observed that Russia seemed to be intent on recovering its military prestige and had made vast naval preparations.
There is an assortment of ephemera, such as programs for memorial celebrations, material related to John Updike's play Buchanan Dying, commemorative stamps, sheet music, and invitations. Souvenir pamphlets from Wheatland provide history about Buchanan's home and the museum. Speeches range from those given by Buchanan to several that honor his life and Presidency. A scrapbook describes the establishment of Wheatland as a museum and contains newspaper articles about archaeology on the site in 1948.
Admin/Biographical History
James Buchanan was born on April 23, 1791 to James Buchanan and Elizabeth Speer. He was the second child born out of ten children, and he would go on to outlive all but one of his siblings. Most popularly remembered as Pennsylvania's only President and as a lifelong bachelor, Buchanan committed a lifetime to politics. In 1821, he left his law practice and embarked on his political career after having been voted into the U.S. House of Representatives. He would remain in the House for five consecutive terms before serving as the U.S. Minister to Russia, a Senator in the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Secretary of State, the U.S. Minister to Great Britain, and finally, the 15th President of the United States. He died in his bedchamber at Wheatland at 8:30 AM on June 1, 1868. He was 77 years old.
Date Range
1816-present
Creation Date
1816-present
Year Range From
1816
Creator
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 03
People
Buchanan, James
Johnston, Harriet Lane
Other Creators
Buchanan, James (1791-1868)
Subjects
Ambassadors
Historic houses
Legal documents
Legislators--United States
Letters
Memorials
Monuments
Personal correspondence
Presidents--United States
Russia
Slavery
Statues
Wheatland (Lancaster, Pa.)
Search Terms
Ambassadors
Buchanan Collections
Historic houses
James Buchanan
James Buchanan Presidential Library
Legal documents
Letters
Memorials
Monuments
Correspondence, Personal
Presidents
Russia
Senators, United States
Slavery
Statues
Wheatland
Extent
2 boxes, 80 folders, 1 scrapbook, 1 oversized item, 4 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0096
Location of Originals
Location of originals is noted when known.
Newspaper articles were preserved as photocopies.
Associated Material
James Buchanan Papers, Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections http://archives.dickinson.edu/collection-descriptions/james-buchanan-papers
James Buchanan and Harriet Lane Johnston Papers, Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/collections/james-buchanan-and-harriet-lane-johnston-papers/
James Buchanan Papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/b/Buchanan0091.html
James Buchanan Papers, Penn State University Libraries, https://libraries.psu.edu/findingaids/1458.htm
Related Item Notes
James Buchanan Family Papers (JBFP)
Historical Society of Pennsylvania microfilm in the LancasterHistory Research Library
LancasterHistory Library collection
Photograph collection
Curatorial collection
Wheatland Mansion
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please use digital images and transcriptions when available.
Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Images have been provided for research purposes only.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material. Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
To make a request, please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Classification
MG0096
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Digitization of the James Buchanan Collection was funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, PHMC Appl ID # 201808013051, 2019-2020.
James Buchanan and Wheatland Scrapbook, February 1936-May
1948 was cataloged as part of a project funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, ME60112, 2007-2008.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Title
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Object ID
MG0828
Date Range
1839-1932
Collection
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Title
General Thomas Welsh Family Papers
Description
The General Thomas Welsh Family Papers is a collection of original correspondence, official documents, and ephemera. Many of the papers were created by or directed to Thomas Welsh between approximately 1843 and his death in 1863. They provide glimpses into his youth, his experiences in the Mexican War, his life in Columbia between the wars, and his rise in rank to Brigadier General during the Civil War.
The collection contains correspondence with his wife and family from 1861-1863. There are also official correspondence and documents related to Welsh's military service, autobiographical pieces, correspondence following his death, obituaries, and family papers into the early twentieth century. Other items in the collection include genealogy pages from the family bible, photographic images of Thomas Welsh and family members, two scrapbooks, newspaper issues and newspaper clippings, written notes from recollections of one of Welsh's daughter, and a biographical sketch of Welsh written by his son.
Admin/Biographical History
Thomas Welsh (1824-1863) was a Lancaster County native (born and raised in Columbia), who rose from hardscrabble origins to local fame, first as a Mexican War hero, and then as a brigadier general during the Civil War. He was well known and well respected as a no nonsense officer, for his leadership and gallantry in battle, for his dedication to the service of his country, and for his concern for the welfare of his men.
Welsh lost his father at the age of 2, and went to work to support his family at age 8. He had very little formal schooling, and was largely self-educated. In 1843, at age 19, he left Lancaster County for Washington City, then went west as an itinerant carpenter/laborer to Cincinnati, Little Rock, and Fort Smith.
When the Mexican War broke out in 1846, he enlisted in a Kentucky regiment, and was severely wounded at the battle of Buena Vista (1847) from which he never fully recovered. Returning home to Columbia, he re-enlisted as a second lieutenant, assigned to the 11th U.S. infantry regiment in Mexico City. Within days of his arrival in Mexico City, he was declared unfit for service on account of his battle wound, and sent home again.
Back in Columbia as a civilian, he dabbled in politics, and received a patronage job in the Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works (the rail and canal system connecting Philadelphia and Pittsburgh). After several years, he opened up a grocery and dry goods store in Columbia's canal basin. He also became an insurance agent. In 1857, he was elected Justice of the Peace, and his reputation grew as a community leader. By 1860, he was president of the Borough Council, a founding member of the Columbia Board of Trade, Vice President of the Columbia Cricket Club, and a canal boat operator, in addition to a dry goods merchant, insurance agent, and Justice of the Peace. He had a wife, 5 surviving children, and legal guardianship of his sister's 4 children.
When Confederate forces shelled Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the Civil War, Thomas Welsh raised and organized the first company of volunteers from Lancaster County, and took them into the field as their Captain. Within days, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment, which served out its 90-day enlistment in the Shenandoah Valley.
Returning to Harrisburg, he was appointed Commandant of Camp Curtin, the problem-plagued processing center for new recruits. In short order, Welsh cleaned up the camp's poor sanitary conditions, improved the health of the camp, and implemented soldierly discipline and training.
In October 1861, he resigned from his camp duties, and as Colonel of the 45th Pennsylvania, led his regiment into the field. After brief service outside of Washington, they were sent to South Carolina in December, where they were posted to Otter Island. After the battle of James Island, they were recalled to Newport News, in July 1862, then sent to guard Aquia Creek.
In September, now in brigade command in Burnsides' 9th Corps, Welsh chased Lee's Confederate army west into central Maryland. His brigade broke the enemy line in Fox's Gap, on Sept. 14, then 3 days later achieved the furthest Union advance at Antietam, reaching the edge of Sharpsburg, and nearly cutting off Lee's only avenue of escape. Welsh's gallantry earned him a field promotion to brigadier general, which Congress confirmed on March 13, 1863.
The 9th Corps (Welsh now in command of the 1st Division) was sent west in the spring of 1863, then dispatched south to support Grant's investment of Vicksburg. After Vicksburg fell, they turned east and defeated Confederate General Johnston at the Battle of Jackson. Welsh contracted malaria in the southern swamps, and died in Cincinnati upon their return north. One of his men later recalled, "Had he lived, Welsh would undoubtedly have attained a much higher command. 1
1. Beauge, Eugene, in Albert, Allen D., Ed., History of the Forty-Fifth Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry 1861-1865, Williamsport, PA: Grit Publ. Co, 1912, p. 79.
System of Arrangement
The collection is arranged in series:
Series A Thomas Welsh before the Mexican War
Series B Mexican War, 1846-1848
Series C Between the Mexican War and the Civil War, 1848-1861
Series D Civil War
Series E Post-Civil War
Series F Miscellaneous Family Papers
Series G Papers from the families of Gen. Thomas Welsh and Blanton C. Welsh
Date Range
1839-1932
Year Range From
1839
Year Range To
1932
Creator
Wiggin, Richard C.
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 19
People
Welsh, Thomas
Welsh, Annie Eunice Young
Welsh, Blanton Charles
Welsh, Effie
Welsh, Lilian
Welsh, Mary Young "Mazie"
Buchanan, James
Subjects
Letters
Mexican War, 1846-1848
Military orders
Military promotions
Personal correspondence
Political campaigns
Presidents--Election
Speeches, addresses, etc.
United States. Army--Military life
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
Search Terms
Civil War
Correspondence, Personal
Letters
Mexican War
Military life
Military orders
Military promotions
Political campaigns
Presidential elections
Speeches
United States Army
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Condition
Fair to good
Condition Date
2020-12-18
Condition Notes
Items are in fair to good condition.
Object ID
MG0828
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please use digital images and transcriptions when available. Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Images have been provided for research purposes only. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material.
Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pa.
Classification
MG0828
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Almost all of the papers have been passed down through successive generations of Welsh's descendants, from Thomas Welsh's wife and children to his granddaughter, Emilie Benson (Welsh) Wiggin, to her daughter Nancy Jane (Wiggin) Townsend. After Nancy Townsend's death, her son Charles Townsend passed them on to his cousin, Richard Wiggin (grandson of Emilie Benson Wiggin) in 2015.
A few papers passed out of the family's possession and found their way into other collections. Richard Abel of Columbia, PA began collecting Welsh papers and artifacts some years ago, and subsequently transferred this collection of Welsh materials to Richard Wiggin in 2012.
Less detail
Collection
James Buchanan Family Papers
Title
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 8 Papers of Others (Not Part of the Family), Series 2 Financial and Legal Documents
Object ID
JBFP Part 8 Series 2
  1 document  
Collection
James Buchanan Family Papers
Title
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 8 Papers of Others (Not Part of the Family), Series 2 Financial and Legal Documents
Description
James Buchanan Family Papers, Part 8 Papers of Others (Not Part of the Family), Series 2 contains financial and legal documents. Series 2 includes financial and legal documents within three subseries. Subseries 1 has bills, receipts, ledgers and accounts. Subseries 2 has deeds and land records. Subseries 3 has legal papers.
The financial and legal documents are arranged chronologically, spanning almost 100 years, from 1770 through 1866. The bulk of the items, dated between 1784 and 1790, are promissory notes, receipts of payment and rental slips. There is a large gap between 1790 and 1849. The items from the 1800s include bills of sale, accounts and receipts. The deeds and land records include one hand-drawn survey for an unknown location (1858) and a title report for property in Warren County, New York (1865). The legal papers include documents filed with the courts, transcriptions of a legislative act from Maryland, notes, purchase contract, as well as two foreign documents, possibly a German enlistment record and a Swedish passport, both for Eugene Francois Theodore de la Croix.
Admin/Biographical History
The origination of many of the items contained in this part of the collection are unknown. It is also unclear of the relationship they have with James Buchanan. In the first subseries, there are two names that reappear often from 1770 to 1790, Daniel McCausland and James Crawford. All of these items are either promissory notes, receipts of payment of loans or letters from Daniel to James requesting that he pay a certain sum to the bearer of the note and the reverse would show the receipt of payment of that loan. There is some mention of a Revolutionary War Colonel James Crawford from Lancaster and Daniel addresses one of the notes to "Col. Crawford" so this may be the same individual. (See 8.2.1.001) There is a gap in the receipts and promissory notes from 1790 to 1849. This is also where we see the money on the documents change from pounds and shillings to dollars and cents. There is a bill of sale of the Lancaster Intelligencer newspaper from Edwin W. Hutter by a S. Boyd Hamilton in July 1849, as well as some follow up correspondence regarding that sale. However, in an article published in the Intelligencer on August 7, 1849, Mr. Hutter states that his successor is Captain George Sanderson of Carlisle, Pennsylvania (Lancaster Intelligencer, August 7, 1849, p. 2), which is confirmed in the December 4, 1849 edition which names the editor as "Geo. Sanderson (Lancaster Intelligencer, December 4, 1849, p. 1). The name McCausland reappears in the next subseries for legal papers, however, it is not a William McCausland, Jr. This is in reference to a law suit he filed against James Crawford and William McCausland for money due to him in outstanding rents and profits. There is a deposition notice addressed to "Col. Crawford" so it is likely to be the same James Crawford who had business dealings with Daniel McCausland.
An interesting piece in this subseries is a large transcript of the Court Papers filed in the action by the stockholders of the Marietta & Susquehanna Trading Company against five of their Trustees. The Trustees were entrusted to resolve the company and collect all outstanding debts. However due to a robbery at the bank wherein all of the notes were stolen, they were unable to collect any of the debts. The background of this case is illustrated in Francis Lyman's A Mysterious Bank Robbery (LCHSR 905.748 HSP v. 94, p. 384-385), where it is alleged that one of the Trustees/Defendants, Jacob Grosh, committed the crime. The remaining items are random and vague in the origination and contextual relationship.
1 Ellis, F & Evans, S. (1883). History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: Everetts & Peck. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?id=WsQxAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA52&dq=%22James+Crawford%22+Lancaster,+PA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CDkQ6AEwBWoVChMIhPb155rHyAIVAV0eCh2FDgt6#v=onepage&q=%22James%20Crawford%22%20Lancaster%2C%20PA&f=false
System of Arrangement
JBFP Part 8 Series 2 Financial and Legal Documents
Subseries 1 Bills, Receipts, Ledgers, Accounts
Subseries 2 Deeds and Land Records
Subseries 3 Legal Papers
Year Range From
1770
Year Range To
1866
Creator
James Buchanan Foundation for the Preservation of Wheatland (Lancaster, Pa.)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
People
Buchanan, James
Cameron, Simon
Curtis, George Ticknor
Drayton, John Grimke
Foltz, Jonathan Messersmith
Foster, Stephen Collins
Foster, Morrison
Johnston, Harriet Lane
Muhlenberg, Henry Augustus
Subjects
Letters
Wheatland (Lancaster, Pa.)
Personal correspondence
Search Terms
Correspondence, Personal
Letters
Wheatland
Finding aids
Manuscript groups
Buchanan Collections
James Buchanan Presidential Library
Extent
1 box, 36 folders, 39 items, .5 cubic feet
Object Name
Archive
Language
English, German, Swedish
Object ID
JBFP Part 8 Series 2
Associated Material
James Buchanan Papers, Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections http://archives.dickinson.edu/collection-descriptions/james-buchanan-papers
James Buchanan and Harriet Lane Johnston Papers, Library of Congress https://www.loc.gov/collections/james-buchanan-and-harriet-lane-johnston-papers/
James Buchanan Papers, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, http://www2.hsp.org/collections/manuscripts/b/Buchanan0091.html
James Buchanan Papers, Penn State University Libraries, https://libraries.psu.edu/findingaids/1458.htm
Archives of Maryland Online. Session Laws 1862. (Vol 532. Pg. 267). Retrieved from: http://aomol.msa.maryland.gov/000001/000532/html/am532--267.html
Related Item Notes
James Buchanan Family Papers
James Buchanan Collection, MG0096
Historical Society of Pennsylvania microfilm
Photograph collections
Curatorial collections
Wheatland Mansion
Charles S. Foltz, Surgeon of the Seas: The Adventurous Life of Surgeon General Jonathan M. Foltz In the Days of Wooden Ships, Told from His Notes of the Moment. Indianapolis, IN: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1931. Call # 923.5 F671f
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please use digital images and transcriptions when available.
Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Images have been provided for research purposes only.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material. Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Description Level
Series
Custodial History
The James Buchanan Family Papers were collected by the James Buchanan Foundation for the Preservation of Wheatland. This collection was relocated from the Wheatland mansion to the LancasterHistory archives in the Spring of 2009. Digitization of the James Buchanan Family Papers was funded by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, PHMC Appl ID # 201808013051, 2019-2020.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
M. T. Garvin Papers
Title
M. T. Garvin Papers (MG-34)
Object ID
MG0034
Date Range
1899-1988
  1 document  
Collection
M. T. Garvin Papers
Title
M. T. Garvin Papers (MG-34)
Description
This collection contains information and materials relating to Milton Thomas Garvin, his department store and the Garvin Lecture Series. The scrapbooks were complied by him through the years of 1899-1936. Other items in this collection include letters to family and business partners, several pamphlets from the Garvin Lecture Series, M. T. Garvin & Co. store information, receipts, invoices, banquet programs, and a sampling of financial records from the store.
Admin/Biographical History
Milton Thomas Garvin was born in Fulton Township around 1860. In 1874, at the age of fourteen, Garvin quit school and moved to Lancaster City. He worked various odd jobs before he was hired to work as an errand boy for R. E. Fahnestock's dry goods store in December of 1874.
At the age of sixteen, Fahnestock promoted Garvin to a salesman for the store. He continued to work there through his adolescent years and was promoted to manager at the age of twenty-one, when Fahnestock was in failing health. Garvin assumed that responsibility for twelve years and then bought the store when Fahnestock was ready to retire. Garvin renamed the store M. T. Garvin & Co.
Over the next ten years, Garvin bought the rest of the building and several surrounding buildings to expand his store to a four story and three lot property. He prospered in business and was a philanthropist throughout Lancaster County.
Other than a prominent businessman, Garvin served as a board member, trustee, director or president of the following organizations: The Shippen School for Girls, Lancaster General Hospital, Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, Meadville Theological Seminary, A. Herr Smith and Mechanics' Libraries, Lancaster Charity Society, Joseph Priestly Conference, and People's Octoraro Meeting House.
Milton Thomas Garvin died on 18 August 1936.
Date Range
1899-1988
Year Range From
1899
Year Range To
1988
Date of Accumulation
1899-1988
Creator
Garvin, Milton Thomas, 1860-1936
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Bechtold, Walter
Bixler, Julius Seelye
Cayce, Hugh Lynn
Chaisson, Eric J.
Compton, Arthur H.
Cousins, Norman
Fitch, S. W.
Fosdick, Harry Emerson
Garvin, Milton Thomas
Hart, Hornell
Hocking, William Ernest
Hopf, Richard
Hupper, Jacob
Kennedy, Gerald
Kiehl, J. P.
Kring, Walter Donald
Lamont, Corliss
Maritain, Jacques
McMurrin, Sterling M.
Niebuhr, Reinhold
Northop, F.S.C.
Noss, John B.
Park, Charles E.
Ross, James H.
Rossner, John
Royden, Maude
Ruether, Rosemary Radford
Smith, Andrew
Sperry, Willard L.
Taylor, Jeremy
Thurman, Howard
Tillich, Paul
Other Creators
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Subjects
Business records
Civic leaders
Department stores
Scrapbooks
Search Terms
Civic leaders
Correspondence
Department stores
Elks (Fraternal order)
Hotel Brunswick
Lancaster Elks Lodge, No. 134
Letters
M. T. Garvin and Co.
Photographs
Scrapbooks
Stevens House Hotel
Williamson Park
Wills
Finding aids
Manuscript groups
Extent
5 boxes,12 folders, 13 scrapbooks, 4.5 cubic ft
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0034
Related Item Notes
See also the Photograph and Curatorial Collections.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-34
Classification
MG0034
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Processed and finding aid prepared by TH, April 2014. Added to database 10 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Blanche Nevin Collection
Title
Blanche Nevin Collection
Object ID
MG0039
Date Range
1905-1940
  1 document  
Collection
Blanche Nevin Collection
Title
Blanche Nevin Collection
Description
Collection contains correspondence, poetry, and newspaper articles.
Admin/Biographical History
Blanche Nevin (1841-1925), artist and poet, was born in Mercersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania. She was the daughter of John Williamson Nevin, a theologian, teacher, and minister, and Martha Jenkins, daughter of the politician and iron master at Windsor Forges, Robert Jenkins. When Dr. Nevin became the president of Franklin & Marshall College in 1855, he moved the family to Lancaster. They moved to Windsor Forges (or Windsor Place) from 1856 to 1858, while Dr. Nevin acted as executor of his mother-in-law's estate, and then moved permanently to Caernarvon Place on Columbia Avenue (the present site of Degel Israel Synagogue). The Nevin children were well-educated and cultivated for society, as their parents had been.
Blanche was the nation's first noteworthy sculptress. In 1889, she sculpted the statue of Revolutionary War General Peter Muhlenberg, which stands in the National Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol. She also sculpted the bust of President Woodrow Wilson. Lancastrians are most familiar with her Lion in the Park (1905) at Reservoir Park and her horse drinking fountain (1898) at the intersection of Columbia Avenue and West Orange Street. Blanche composed a number of poems and set several to music; many were inspired by Lancaster County, her travels, and family and friends. Her poems include: "Great-Grandma's Looking-Glass" (1895), "One Usual Day" (1916), and "To My Door" (1921).
She bought Windsor Place in Caernarvon Twp. in 1897, restored the mansion house and the name Windsor Forges, and added a studio. Furniture and other influences from her travels adorned the house and grounds. She also owned a house in Manasquan, New Jersey; spent time with friends in New York and Philadelphia; and traveled a great deal, especially during the winter.
Her obituary in a Lancaster County newspaper states, "The simple, unpretentious neighbors of Miss Nevin never questioned her foreign ideas and eccentricities, but accepted her for the true, human qualities which she so abundantly possessed."
Date Range
1905-1940
Year Range From
1905
Year Range To
1940
Date of Accumulation
1905-1940
Creator
Aungst, John
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 01
People
Appel, Roberts
Appell, John
Carmichael, Catharine
Dock, Mrs.
Forney, J. G.
Gable, S. Edw.
Jenkins, Catharine Carmichael
Jenkins, Robert
Magee, David F.
Nevin, Blanche
Shenk, H. H.
Shoemaker, Henry W.
Other Creators
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Subjects
Sculptors
Poets, American
Letters
Poetry
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Search Terms
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Correspondence
Lancaster Automobile Club
Letters
Newspaper clippings
Poetry
Poets
Sculptors
Windsor Forge
Manuscript groups
Finding aids
Extent
1 box, 3 folders, .15 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0039
Related Item Notes
MG-730 Blanche Nevin Papers
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-39
Classification
MG0039
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
This collection was cataloged in 1998; added to database 15 May 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Samuel E. Dyke Collection of Papers
Title
Samuel E. Dyke Collection of Papers
Object ID
MG0061
Date Range
1670-1985
Collection
Samuel E. Dyke Collection of Papers
Title
Samuel E. Dyke Collection of Papers
Description
Samuel E. Dyke was a noted authority on the Pennsylvania rifle and wrote on this subject. Collection consists of articles, correspondence, photographs, research notes, and working papers on firearms. Also included is information on gunsmiths, the Rockford Foundation, the Heritage Center, cabinetmakers, grandfather clocks, and the Armstrong Cork Company. 1670-1985
Date Range
1670-1985
Creation Date
mid-20th century-1985
Year Range From
1670
Year Range To
1985
Creator
Dyke, Samuel Eugene, 1900-1985
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 02
People
Armstrong, John
Atherton, Cornelius
Atkins, Wyatt
Beck, John Philip
Berry, Peter
Breitenhard, Johann Christoph
Brown, Parker B.
Buchele, William M.
Corridon, Raymond R.
Dobson, Thomas
Dubbs, Jacob
Dyke, Samuel Eugene
Fetter, George
Feder, George
Fondersmith, John
Grancsay, Steven V.
Grove, S.
Grubb, Peter
Hawkins, Henry
Henry, William
Hoff, H. Bare
Kendig, Joe, Jr.
Kuntz, Jacob
Kuntz, Peter
Landis, George
Landis, Henry
Lehn, Joseph
Lincoln, Abraham
Magee, D. F.
Manger, Henry
Meyhardt, Peter
Pennypacker, A. J.
Sprecher, Peter
Walker, Joseph E.
Yeates, Jasper
Subjects
Armstrong Cork Company
Gunsmiths
Kentucky rifle
Cabinetmakers
Clocks and watches
Search Terms
Armstrong Cork Company
Booklets
Cabinetmakers
Clocks and watches
Conrad Weiser State Park
Correspondence
Flintlock Rifles
Gunsmiths
Halbach Pistols
Harpers Ferry Arsenal and Armory
Hopewell Forge
Kentucky Match Rifle
Kentucky rifles
Kentucky Rifle Association
Lancaster County Bicentennial Committee
Malsh Pistols
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Pamphlets
Pennsylvania Rifles
Rotary International
Pennsylvania Deithsch Eck
World War II
Extent
6 boxes, 113 folders, 4.25 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0061
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Related Item Notes
Photograph Collection
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Samuel E. Dyke Collection of Papers (MG-61), Folder #, LancasterHistory.org
Other Numbers
MG-61
Classification
MG0061
Description Level
Fonds
Less detail
Collection
Archive of Alice P. Fordney
Title
Archive of Alice P. Fordney
Object ID
HC0001
Date Range
1905-1974
built Wheatland in 1828 and later sold the property to President James Buchanan. Colonel William Bush Fordney, her �230 North President Avenue • Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17603-3125 717.392.4633 • www.LancasterHistory.org paternal grandfather, was a prominent lawyer in Lancaster. He served as district
  1 document  
Collection
Archive of Alice P. Fordney
Title
Archive of Alice P. Fordney
Description
This collection contains ephemera related to Alice Potter Fordney, antiques dealer and rugmaker. Items in the collection include business correspondence with Armstrong, F. Schumacher & Co., and the Montclair art museum; personal correspondence with friends and family; hooked rug patterns; and antiques sale flyers from the early 20th century. Also included in the collection are newspaper clippings, including the obituary of Fordney's sister Ellen Franklin; reference material for rug making and interior design (informational sheets, books and patterns); several items related to the Yeates School, which Fordney's brother William Bush Fordney attended; several photographs of unidentified persons; and a statement related to the will of William J. Fordney, her uncle.
Admin/Biographical History
Alice Potter Fordney was born June 21, 1887 in Lancaster, the daughter of Ida Cox and Thomas Potter Fordney. A prominent antique dealer from the late 1920s to her retirement in 1965, Fordney also made and sold hooked rugs.
Fordney's family features prominently in Lancaster County history. Her maternal great-grandfather was John Michael, who owned the historic Grape Hotel from 1805-1839. Fordney's paternal great-grandfather William Jenkins built Wheatland in 1828 and later sold the property to President James Buchanan. Colonel William Bush Fordney, her paternal grandfather, was a prominent lawyer in Lancaster. He served as district attorney from 1839-1845 and negotiated for the loan that enabled Lancaster city to build the "water works" in the 1830s. Sarah Cox, her maternal grandmother, was a known philanthropist and for years helped to manage the Home for Friendless Children in Lancaster. Her sister, Ellen Fordney Franklin, was a "pioneer" in the industry of women's knit suits, opening her first shop in 1929 in Philadelphia.
Fordney never married. She kept in contact with her nieces and nephews, as evidenced by letters in the collection. According to notes provided by Wendell Zercher, Sarah Ellmaker McIlvaine Muench, her niece and the donor of the collection, recalled her as "warm and artistic," and "a character." She died April 17, 1973, at the age of 85.
Works Cited:
"Mrs. Franklin, pioneer of women's knit suits, dies." Daily Intelligencer Journal [Lancaster, PA], 10 May 1963, p. 2.
"Accident Fatal to Mrs. Sarah A. Cox." Daily Intelligencer Journal [Lancaster, PA], no date, page unknown.
"Miss Fordney, Antique Dealer, 85, Succumbs." Daily Intelligencer Journal [Lancaster, PA], 18 April 1973, p. 2.
"One of Lancaster's Most Prominent and Venerable Citizens Passes Away." Daily Intelligencer Journal [Lancaster, PA], 29 July 1889, p. 1.
Date Range
1905-1974
Year Range From
1905
Year Range To
1974
Date of Accumulation
1905-1974
Creator
Fordney, Alice Potter, 1887-1973
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives North
Storage Wall
Side 28
People
Appel, Charles Rengier
Bohlen, Sidney Franklin
Bowman, Mrs. Edward J.
Boyer, R. J.
Brenneman, Mary Rue Bard
Brown, Hazel Dell
Chiarell, Fred P.
Clark, George W.
Daugherty, Harvey P.
Demuth, Charles
Dodge, Arthur B.
Embsweiler, Ruth
Erb, Edna
Fordney, Alice Potter
Fordney, William Bush Jr.
Fordney, William Jenkins
Franklin, Ellen Julia Fordney
Gibbons, Alice McIlvaine
Gilbert, L. J.
Gingrich, Milton E.
Graybill, John M.
Griest, Charles J.
Higby, Everett
Hostetter, A. K.
Howe, John
Irvine, Blanche
Kent, William Winthrop
Knodle, Edward
Krone, Herbert B.
Lindenmuth, J. D.
Long, Yvonne
Maclay, Helen Hurley
Malone, Clarence
Morris, Charles R.
Morris, Grace M.
Nauman, Gertrude Colson
Orr, Barclay
Pennypacker, Charles A.
Pennypacker, James G.
Randall, Meda
Rannels, Paul
Stokes, Agnes M.
Strickler, Belle
Wolf, Emily
Other Creators
Muench, Sarah Ellmaker McIlvaine, d. 2006
Subjects
American newspapers--Sections, columns, etc.--Women
Antique dealers
Armstrong Cork Company
Armstrong World Industries
F. Schumacher & Co.
Farm Journal Media
House & Garden
Interior decoration
Letters
Montclair Art Museum
Patterns for crafts
Rugs
Rugs, Hooked
Student newspapers and periodicals
Woman's world magazine
Search Terms
Albert Steiger Company
Antique dealers
Antique sales
Armstrong Cork Company
Armstrong World Industries, Inc.
Berlinwork patterns
Blue and Brown (Yeates School)
Cheney Silks
Cheney Weaves
Christmas
Correspondence
Cricket Club
Dickinson Presbyterian Church
Estate sales
F. Schumacher and Company
Farm Journal Media
Fiber arts
Finding aids
Gilbert's store
Griest Homestead
Guernsey Sales Pavilion
Hager's Department Store
Hershey Fire Hall
Hooked rugs
House & Garden
Interior decoration
Kleinfelter's auction rooms
Letters
Manuscript groups
Montclair Art Museum
Odd Fellows Hall
Olson Rugs
Patterns for crafts
Rossmere Hotel
Rug patterns
Rugs
State Armory Hall
V-mail
Woman's World Magazine
Yeates School
Extent
3 boxes, 37 folders, 333 items, 1,015 pages to scan, 4.5 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
HC0001
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Associated Material
Sarah McIlvaine Muench Family Papers, MS 44 at Archives and Special Collections, Shadek-Fackenthal Library, Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, PA.
Related Item Notes
See photograph collection.
See curatorial collection for examples of rugs.
Fordney Family Diaries (MG0539)
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Archive of Alice P. Fordney (HC0001), Box #, Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
The kraft paper patterns in Folders 33-37 are restricted. Please make an appointment with the Director of Archival Services to view these items.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org. Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Accession Number
G.04.23.52
Classification
HC0001
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
From the Heritage Center of Lancaster County collection, G04.23.52.
Processed and finding aid prepared by MJ, June 2018.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
George and Rhonda Andreadis Collection of Lancaster City Records, Series 4
Title
George and Rhonda Andreadis Collection of Lancaster City Records, Series 4 Railroads
Object ID
MG0545_Series04
Date Range
1833-1896
  1 document  
Collection
George and Rhonda Andreadis Collection of Lancaster City Records, Series 4
Title
George and Rhonda Andreadis Collection of Lancaster City Records, Series 4 Railroads
Description
The documents in MG0545, Series 4 represent the business of the City of Lancaster related to the Columbia and Philadelphia Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad, including correspondence, invoices and a petition.
System of Arrangement
This collection is organized into series:
Series 1 Market Houses
Series 2 Fire Department
Series 3 Bridges
Series 4 Railroads
Series 5 Lamps and Lighting
Series 6 Relief Fund
Series 7 Administrative Records
Date Range
1833-1896
Creation Date
1833-1896
Year Range From
1833
Year Range To
1896
Creator
Lancaster (Pa.)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 11
People
Ihling, Charles C.
Flick, Henry
Zimmerman, John
Subjects
Business records
Columbia-Philadelphia Railroad
Invoices
Lancaster (Pa.)
Pennsylvania Railroad
Petitions
Railroads
Search Terms
Business records
Columbia and Philadelphia Railroad
Correspondence
Finding aids
Invoices
Lancaster
Letters
Manuscript groups
Pennsylvania Railroad
Petitions
Railroads
Extent
1 box, 4 folders, .1 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0545_Series04
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory
Related Item Notes
Lancaster City Archives
George and Rhonda Andreadis Collection of Lancaster City Records, MG0545
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions. Original documents may be used. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org prior to visit.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-545, Series 4
Other Number
MG-545, Series 4
Classification
MG0545
Description Level
Series
Custodial History
Note: These documents are mostly administrative records, not permanent records, and were likely purged by the city offices when they were no longer needed. We are fortunate that they survived as they contain details about Lancaster's past.
Collection was organized and rehoused by JP, Summer 2011.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Heritage of Drumore Collection
Title
Heritage of Drumore Collection
Object ID
MG0651
Date Range
1921
  1 document  
Collection
Heritage of Drumore Collection
Title
Heritage of Drumore Collection
Description
The Heritage of Drumore Collection contains a report and letters pertaining to the Drumore clebratin in 1921 in Drumore Township, Lancaster County, whereupon monuments of Dr. David Ramsey, General John Steele, and Colonel Thomas William Porter were dedicated. Letters are addressed to George Porter, descendant of Col. Thomas Porter.
Date Range
1921
Creation Date
1921
Creator
LancasterHistory (Organization)
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 13
People
Magee, David Francis
Porter, George T.
Subjects
Drumore (Pa. : Township)
Letters
Reports
Search Terms
Correspondence
Drumore Twp.
Finding aids
Letters
Manuscript groups
Reports
Extent
1 folder
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0651
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Notes
Preferred Citation: Heritage of Drumore Collection (MG0651), Folder #, LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
No restrictions.
Copyright
Collection may not be photocopied. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at research@lancasterhistory.org.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Other Numbers
MG-651
Other Number
MG-651
Classification
MG0651
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Processed and finding aid prepared by KV, May-June 2014. Added to database 2 July 2021.
Documents
Less detail
Collection
Diffenderffer Family Papers
Title
Diffenderffer Family Papers
Object ID
MG0410
Date Range
1691-1963
Lancaster Land drafts Lemon Street School Letters Manuscript groups Mortgages New Design, Earl Twp. New Holland Newspaper clippings Programs Real estate Real property surveys Reigart's Landing Susquehanna River Texas Texas Frontier Forces Windsor Forge Related Materials: Processing History: Cataloged by HST
  1 document  
Collection
Diffenderffer Family Papers
Title
Diffenderffer Family Papers
Description
The Diffenderffer Family Papers collection contains items that have been passed down through generations of the Diffenderffer family. Deeds for tracts of land in New Holland date back to the creation of New Design, the village that preceded New Holland. Correspondence and some manuscripts pertain to J. P. McCaskey's life and accomplishments. F. R. Diffenderffer's manuscripts on Easter Day and Conrad Weiser are preserved with this collection, as well as poems, a program for the C. Elvin Haupt School, and a claim of F. R. Diffenderffer & Co. against the State of Texas.
Date Range
1691-1963
Year Range From
1691
Year Range To
1963
Date of Accumulation
1691-1963
Creator
Diffenderffer family
Storage Location
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, PA
Storage Room
Archives South
Storage Wall
Side 10
People
Brubaker, John
Brubaker, Margaret
Brubaker, Philip
Davis, Sarah
Diffenderfer, David
Diffenderfer, Elizabeth Shirk
Diffenderfer, John
Diffenderffer, Christina
Diffenderffer, David
Diffenderffer, David, Sr.
Diffenderffer, Fianna L. Lutz
Diffenderffer, Frank Ried
Diffenderffer, Harold F.
Diffenderffer, John, Jr.
Diffenderffer, John, Sr.
Diffenderffer, Margaretta Stein
Diffenderffer, Michael
Freymyer, Jacob
Grim, Henry
Haupt, Charles Elvin
Hoch, Herman E.
Holl, Wendel
Hubley, Bernard
Kennerly, John
Kinzer, John
Kinzer, Magdalena
Koch, Mary
Koch, Melchior
Law, James D.
Markley, Henry
McCaskey, Donald G.
McCaskey, John Piersol "Jack"
Nevin, Blanche
Painter, John
Penn, William
Rodman, John H.
Shirk, Henry
Smith, Oliver
Smith, William Evans
Sneider, Christian
Stone, David
Stone, George
Stone, Leonard
Stone, Mary
Sutton, Mary A. Diffenderffer
Thomson, Bill "Tommy"
Winter, John
Young, Matthias
Other Creators
Diffenderffer, Fianna L. Lutz, 1918-2009
Diffenderffer, David
Subjects
Deeds
Letters
Real property
Search Terms
Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
Conestoga River
Correspondence
Deeds
Drowning
Earl Twp.
England
Estate settlement
Finding aids
German Reformed Church of New Holland
Haupt Elementary School
Hutchings Printing House
King Street
Lancaster
Land drafts
Lemon Street School
Letters
Manuscript groups
Mortgages
New Design, Earl Twp.
New Holland
Newspaper clippings
Programs
Real estate
Real property surveys
Reigart's Landing
Susquehanna River
Texas
Texas Frontier Forces
Windsor Forge
Extent
1 box, 23 folders, .5 cubic ft.
Object Name
Archive
Language
English
Object ID
MG0410
Location of Originals
LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Notes
Preferred Citation: Title or description of item, date (day, month, year), Collection Title (MG#), Folder #, (or Object ID), LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. URL if applicable. Date accessed (day, month, year).
Deeds in folders 1-18 were a gift of Fianna Diffenderffer and the Diffenderffer family, 4 November 2006.
Items in folders 19-23 were a gift from her nephew, David Diffenderffer, 14 August 2006.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Restrictions are noted at the item level--please use photocopies or transcriptions for those items. Other original documents may be used by researchers--contact Research@LancasterHistory.org prior to visit or request at Reference Desk.
Copyright
Collection items may be photographed. Please direct questions to Research Center Staff at Research@LancasterHistory.org. Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Persons wishing to publish any material from this collection must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Accession Number
2006.MG0410_NOV
Other Numbers
MG-410
Classification
MG0410
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Cataloged by HST, November 2008. Added to database 28 July 2021.
Documents
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